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Monday, January 21, 2013

Spruce Up Shiitake and Make a Mushroom
Streusel!

Written by Mary Ellen

A typical winter scene at F&FP

It’s winter and I recently staggered out the back door with
our spruce tree turned tannenbaum as I feel I must do after Epiphany in
January. The tree was still gorgeous and fully needled (at least on one side,
coming from a crowded row of white spruce), but because we usually don’t get
around to cutting our tree until a week before Christmas, I was sad to drag
away the once dazzling, fragrant tree.I
similarly feel sad (but also relieved) about the decline of wonderful holiday
food.

Our daughter Phoebe was home from college for the holidays
and thanks to feed-yourself- apartment living, she has taken the great leap from
cookie baking queen to vegetable diva. This is nice because while it's only January
15, I already start to feel the tedium of post-holiday austerity, and I am thrilled to
find Phoebe slice and crumble her way into a January meal with a Shiitake dish
that is a little apart from the same old same old. It’s a new dish that I will be making whenever
I want something a little special and healthy as a salad topping, a side dish
or crunchiness to eat straight from the pan. I will always be satisfied with
the memory of Shiitake Streusel making, a random winter night sparkling with
creativity, accomplishment and mushroom cookery beautifully handed down to the
next generation.

Phoebe's recent streusel creation.

Shiitake Streusel

Phoebe’s apartment kitchen is minimally equipped,
so all of her recipes are approximate. She gives us visual tips to let us know how
much is enough.

Ingredients:

1 to 1 ½ lbs fresh Shiitake1- 2 T oil

Feta cheese, best quality - 4 oz. crumbled

1/4 to ½ c chopped toasted pecans or an amount to taste

Balsamic vinegar, about 1/2 to 1 T

A rimmed, oiled or parchment lined baking sheet

Preheat oven to 400 degrees (F)

Trim stems from Shiitake. Slice caps into ½ inch pieces.

In a large bowl, toss caps with the oil until the
sides of the bowl and mushrooms are glossy. Season well with salt and pepper. Spread
mushroom slices out in a single layer on the tray and put them in the hot
oven,turning the mushrooms with a
spatula after the first 10 minutes. Let both sides approach golden brown and
chewy.

Remove Shiitake and combine with cheese and pecans. Sprinkle
with balsamic vinegar to taste. Serve warm or room temperature as
a side dish, salad topping, steamed vegetable or casserole topping, wrap or omelet
filling, etc.

Make these delicious buttermilk breakfast biscuits by
brushing the tops with beaten egg and pressing shiitake streusel (substitute
feta with smoked gouda) on top just before putting them in the oven.

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About Us

Welcome to the official blog of Field & Forest Products. For those of you who are unfamiliar with our company; we have been in the mushroom business for 34 years. As a mail-order business, we cultivate and sell organic mushrooms and mushroom spawn. Located in Northeastern Wisconsin, our small family owned business is constantly growing. This blog was created with the hope that people get to know not only the business, but also the people behind it.